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Week 35: Preliminary fieldwork Part 3
I returned to the UK a week ago after spending four weeks in Japan conducting preliminary fieldwork. It was a pilot observation in my home country, but still, it was an amazing experience. Since I had worked on literature reviews of Japanese healthcare issues while living in the UK, every interaction, every event felt genuine read more
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Week 34: Preliminary fieldwork Part 2
I had contacted three care homes through my personal connections. The managers, nurses and caregivers showed positive interest in my research. They agreed to my presence during activities in the care homes. The allied doctors working at these facilities told me that they seldom engage in verbal interaction with their patients, except when performing clinical read more
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Week 33: Luca’s second time in Tokyo
Luca came to Japan for the first time in nine months for a holiday. I spent this whole week meeting friends and sightseeing around Tokyo with Luca. For my research, I only managed to complete the translation of the information forms. Whenever I meet my close friends for a chat, I am reminded of what read more
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Week 32: Preliminary fieldwork Part 1
It’s been very humid and hot in Tokyo. I started conducting my preliminary fieldwork. This week, I was allowed to observe 7 medical consultations and take notes. In each, a doctor, a nurse, a patient and the patient’s family were there. The doctor introduced me to the patients; it was an opportunity for the patients read more
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Week 31
On Thursday, I flew from the UK to Japan to start my three-week preliminary field research. I will be making observations in Tokyo for the next two weeks, with further observations in a rural region in the third week. A rash came out on my arms two weeks ago, and I visited a walk-in clinic read more
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Week 30
The ethics committee has finally granted my ethics clearance. It was in Week 20 that I started working on the application forms. It took two-and-a-half months to shape my research protocol, information sheets and consent forms. A couple of weeks ago, I received a request for modifications and resubmitted a response letter and the full read more
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Week 29: Graduation week
Week 29 was my Master’s graduation week. I am not finishing yet, as I am doing my PhD studies at the same university, but I wore the graduation gown, attended the ceremony and took many photos with my old classmates, which was a very nice reunion! My goals for Week 30 complete my read more
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Weeks 27 and 28
I received an email from the ethics committee requesting a few minor modifications to my ethics application. Following my supervisor’s suggestions, I spent a couple of days revising and updating the documents. Last weekend, Luca and I visited a new restaurant. Like Michelin inspectors, we scrutinised the service, the food, and whether the restaurant was read more
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